1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to placement of wellbore completions.
2. Description of the Related Art
Downhole drilling operations have seen use of well casings for some time. After a well is drilled, casings are inserted into the borehole to provide structural integrity to the borehole. Casings are often made up of sections of steel pipe that connect end-to-end as they are inserted into the borehole. Many wells that are drilled require a casing, and typically as the depth of the well increases, the diameter of successive sections of the casing decreases. A final completion, which may incorporate a casing section, screens, liners, valves or other components, is often required in the producing formation.
Often a borehole that begins as a vertical well will be extended in a horizontal direction, for example, to reach a petroleum reservoir that is disposed in a region laterally offset relative to the vertical portion of the well. In such wells, there is a need to ensure placement of completion equipment in the horizontal portion, and the horizontal extension can be relatively long.
In addition, various types of downhole vibratory tools have been used for through-tubing well intervention operations, including cleaning and milling operations inside liners after they are placed. It would be desirable to provide a specialized tool that can assist in the placement of completion equipment such as liners, screens, valves, patches, plugs, packers, velocity strings, diverters, flow control devices, monitoring equipment, whipstocks or any other equipment in the horizontal portion of a borehole.